Johanna Garth is the author of The Persephone Campbell Series; a modern take on the myth of Hades and Persephone. Johanna lives in McLean, Virginia with her husband and two children.

Monday, November 25, 2013

Turkey Love

The first of our houseguests arrived Sunday night; a family of four that make me thankful for the blessing of good friends.

More houseguests arrive tonight and then more on Wednesday; the kind that make me thankful for family who are willing to fly and fight traffic to celebrate the upcoming holiday in my home.

We are bursting at the seams with love, good cheer and children who can't get enough of each other.

There's already so much that makes me thankful. On top of that, I get to play cookie crafting with three little girls and one little boy while we make our favorite edible Thanksgiving turkey placeholders.

Maybe, just maybe, if I get really lucky, the children will be convinced to put on a classic skit about the first Thanksgiving with Pilgrims meeting the Indians capped, of course, by a grand finale rendition of Albuquerque He's My Turkey.

I've copied the lyrics below...in case any of you aren't familiar with this Thanksgiving gem. It's sung to the tune of Darling Clementine; and if it's reproduced over your Thanksgiving table, that will be one more thing that makes me smile.

Albuquerque he's my turkey, And he's feathered and he's fine. And he wobbles, and he gobbles,And he's absolutely mine.

He's the best pet you can ever get, Better than a dog or cat. Albuquerque, he's my turkey, And I'm awfully glad of that.

Albuquerque, he's my turkey, He's so cozy in his bed, Because for our Thanksgiving dinner, We had scrambled eggs instead.

Those turkey cookies look so good! And Happy Thanksgiving to you too! I don't really celebrate Thanksgiving anymore; when I worked in retail, they wouldn't let us take any time off during the holiday season. The habit kind of stayed with me. But it's nice to see that other people are keeping up the tradition!